Would you have gone to university if you had to pay for it?

[BlasterBates]

I would have done an Open University degree and got a job. In fact that's what I recommend anyone to do rather than end up with 30 grand worth of debts.

[mudskipper]

I would have done an Open University degree and got a job. In fact that's what I recommend anyone to do rather than end up with 30 grand worth of debts.

OU fees are going up too. An OU degree will cost you £15K if you start from September.

[Mich the Tester]

OU fees are going up too. An OU degree will cost you £15K if you start from September.

Yep, but at least you can work at the same time. Their fees are going up, but are internationally very competitive; the OU is actually one of Britain's export success stories and has a chance of doing even better now as some European countries like NL are making part time higher education prohibitively expensive.

[Scrag Meister]

Not sure to be honest, i would like to think I would go, but would certainly think twice.

Back in the day I was on £630 grant per term, Parents were supposed to give me £50 per term but regularly filled my larder instead.

I worked summer hols and left without any debt, a motorbike, a tv, and a stereo. Not that I didn't have an absolute blast but was just careful with my cash, still am.

Within 2 months of leaving I had bought my first house. Would I have been able with a Student Loan around my neck?

To be honest I have never used any of the technology I used at Poly.
Mainframe - College, PC at first job and since.
Pascal, C++ - College, Basic at first job and since, with a smattering of C++, C#

I was programming before college, C64 Basic, and I'm still mainly a Basic programmer after 24 years, only been on the bench for 5 months total in that time. So what I learned at 14 has more relevance to my career to date.

Uni obviously is also about independent living, so that was useful.

[Mich the Tester]

I can't teach the degree students stuff I used to teach on HNC 30 years ago coz they can't do the maths

Now this really is silly. I heard a discussion on Dutch radio last week where people were complaining about the government reintroducing an old rule that you have to have passed maths at HAVO or VWO (at least old style O level grade C and/or A-Level) if you want to do a degree, be it vocational or academic. Some girl was moaning 'I can't do maths so if this goes ahead I can't study for an art degree´. No, you won´t be able to do that if you don´t put in the effort to pass maths, and that is absolutely fair and right. Maths is a good way to develop and test intelligence, logical and critical thinking and analysis and it requires discipline and patience if you don't have a natural gift for it, and that´s why it´s part of the basis of academic level work, yes even in the arts; if you can't do maths then you'll have to accept you're either not clever enough or too feckless to do a degree in any subject, so do something else. I disagree with many of the current Dutch government's education policies, but on this matter they've got it absolutely right.

Rant over, and not really directed at you anyway.

[Halo Jones]

Well, being a dodgy permie I got sponsorship for day release & got the employer to pay my fees, so after 5 years I got a BSc, 5 years’ experience & a promotion (its the only way to go)

[d000hg]

Just a quick poll. My gut feeling is that quite a lot of people of my generation wouldn't have gone to university if they had been faced with an upfront bill of £30k in tuition fees and no grant.

I DID have to pay for it. I'm still paying for it

[Mich the Tester]

I DID have to pay for it. I'm still paying for it

The studying or the boozing?

[eek]

Well, being a dodgy permie I got sponsorship for day release & got the employer to pay my fees, so after 5 years I got a BSc, 5 years’ experience & a promotion (its the only way to go)

Which will be exactly what my children will be doing. If you look carefully the large accountancy firms have quietly announced a recruit at 18 policy to get good (but poor) students early.

[d000hg]

Now this really is silly. I heard a discussion on Dutch radio last week where people were complaining about the government reintroducing an old rule that you have to have passed maths at HAVO or VWO (at least old style O level grade C and/or A-Level) if you want to do a degree, be it vocational or academic. Some girl was moaning 'I can't do maths so if this goes ahead I can't study for an art degree´. No, you won´t be able to do that if you don´t put in the effort to pass maths, and that is absolutely fair and right. Maths is a good way to develop and test intelligence, logical and critical thinking and analysis and it requires discipline and patience if you don't have a natural gift for it, and that´s why it´s part of the basis of academic level work, yes even in the arts; if you can't do maths then you'll have to accept you're either not clever enough or too feckless to do a degree in any subject, so do something else. I disagree with many of the current Dutch government's education policies, but on this matter they've got it absolutely right.

Rant over, and not really directed at you anyway.

I wonder how many renowned modern authors don't have maths at that level.

I'm not sure school-level maths teaches intelligence or logical thinking, it just teaches you how to do school-level maths exams. I think English (or your local equivalent) is better as a general "not dumb" qualification - you have to be able to comprehend material, analyse it and structure a thought-out response.